What is the health insurance marketplace?
Health Insurance Marketplace® connects individuals to affordable, quality health insurance plans, and provides financial assistance to those who are eligible. The Health Insurance Marketplace helps you shop for and enroll in coverage that fits your needs and budget. Plans cover essential health benefits, pre-existing conditions, and preventive care.
What coverage can I expect?
Plans are required to cover comprehensive essential health benefits including:
- Outpatient care and preventative care
- Hospital and Emergency Department Services
- Pregnancy, Maternity and Newborn Care
- Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services
- Prescription Drugs
What do I need to apply?
- Social Security Number (or document numbers for legal residents) for everyone in your household who needs coverage.
- Employer and Income Information (For example, pay stubs, W-2 forms) for every member of your household who needs coverage.
- Detailed information about your employer’s insurance (if offered).
Special Enrollment
- If you experience certain life events or your income estimate falls within a certain range, you may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period to enroll in or change your Marketplace plan.
- Loss of Health Coverage (Like Medicaid)
- Got married (Pick a plan by the last day of the month and your coverage can start the first day of the next month.)
- Had a baby, adopted a child, or placed a child for foster care. Your coverage can start the day of the event — even if you enroll in the plan up to 60 days afterward.
- Got divorced or legally separated and lost health insurance. Divorce or legal separation without losing coverage doesn’t qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period.
- Moved to a new state
Am I eligibile?
- To be eligible to enroll in health coverage in the Marketplace, you must:
- Live in the United States (U.S)
- Be a U.S. citizen or national, or be lawfully present non-citizen in the U.S.
- Not be incarcerated.
- You may qualify for savings, like a premium tax credit or cost-sharing reductions, based on your household size and income. (Must file taxes for year you have coverage in order to get tax credit.) If you don’t qualify for savings, you can still buy Marketplace coverage.
How to get started
- Create a Marketplace account on healthcare.gov
- Get ready to apply
Preview plans and prices based on your income - Find out what savings you qualify for
- Enroll in health coverage
- Pay your 1st month payment to your insurance company
Need help?
Assisters provide free assistance with your application. Find a Assister today!
Important Dates
Medicaid/CHIP
What is Nebraska Medicaid/CHIP?
Nebraska Medicaid provides health services to certain low income persons including those that are aged, blind, disabled, childred aged 18 and younder, pregnant women and others who meet eligibility requirements.
You may be eligible if you meet certain income requirements and are in one of the following eligible groups:
- You are under 19 years old
- You are pregnant
- You are aged 65 or over
- You are under 65 years of age, have a disability, or are visually impaied according to Social Security
- You are the parent, or caretaker relative, of a child under 19 years old
- You are a citizen or lawfully present in the United States
- You are a former foster care youth who has aged out of the system (under the age of 26)
Heritage Health Adult Medicaid
Nebraska has expanded Medicaid benefits to low-income, able-bodied adults of working age (19-64 years old). You must meet income requirements to qualify. Benefits include doctor’s office visits, emergencies, hospitalization, maternity and newborn, wellness visits and more.
Important Dates
You can apply for benefits any time of the year. Plan selection, through Heritage Health, is done during Open Enrollment which is November 1st-December 15th every year. Members can also change their plan in the first 90 days
Extended Postpartum Coverage/Continuous Eligibility for Children
Nebraska Medicaid has extended postpartum coverage for pregnant moms to 12 months and continuous eligibility for children for 12 months.
What to do if you lost Medicaid
| If you have recently lost or may soon lose health coverage through Nebraska Medicaid, help is available. You may be eligible for a plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace. Navigators are trained and educated in the different options for health insurance. Find the closest assister near you |
